FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Research Coverage Started at HSBC

HSBC started coverage on shares of FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $50.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on FE. New Street Research set a $47.00 target price on FirstEnergy in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on FirstEnergy from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Mizuho set a $47.00 price objective on FirstEnergy in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $54.00 to $49.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.83.

FirstEnergy Stock Performance

Shares of FE stock opened at $46.16 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $45.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.71 billion, a PE ratio of 24.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. FirstEnergy has a 52 week low of $42.67 and a 52 week high of $52.34.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50. The business had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.51 billion. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 10.51% and a net margin of 6.86%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that FirstEnergy will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 6th will be issued a $0.4650 dividend. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 6th. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio is 98.94%.

Institutional Trading of FirstEnergy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FE. Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Highland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy during the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy during the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 44.4% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 754 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GK Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in FirstEnergy in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 89.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FirstEnergy Company Profile

FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) is an electric utility company focused on the transmission and distribution of electricity. Through its regulated utility subsidiaries, the company delivers power to residential, commercial and industrial customers and maintains the poles, lines, substations and other infrastructure that support electric service.

FirstEnergy’s distribution operations serve customers across parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia and Maryland. Its utility companies include Ohio Edison, The Illuminating Company, Toledo Edison, Jersey Central Power & Light, Met-Ed, Penelec, Penn Power, West Penn Power, Mon Power and The Potomac Edison Company.